Stolen phone link to drowned clubber

Police investigating the discovery of a woman's body in the Thames said today they could not rule out the possibility she was attacked for her mobile phone.

Detectives said there were no obvious reasons why Shi Tang, 20, would have taken her own life after leaving the Ministry of Sound nightclub in Elephant and Castle.

The body of the Chinese national was spotted on the north bank of the Thames between Blackfriars Bridge and Southwark Bridge on Sunday 3 February.

Miss Tang's boyfriend told police she left the nightclub alone carrying her bright yellow jacket, a pair of reflective sunglasses and her red Samsung mobile phone.

None of the items were found with her body.

Detective Chief Inspector Tony Thomas, of the City of London Police, said: "We are keeping an open mind. While we are not particularly pursuing that she was the victim of a robbery we are also not discounting it."

Mr Thomas said the most probable cause of death was drowning. He said Miss Tang, who lived in Bethnal Green, was known on the club scene and was a user of cannabis and ecstasy.

Meanwhile, the full extent of London's street crime epidemic is revealed today by figures showing that muggings and bag snatches have risen from 36,543 to 50,956 in the last 10 months. This is an increase of 40 per cent and senior officers admit the fight against street crime is reaching crisis point.

Figures for last November alone show a shock 65 per cent rise in robberies and bag snatches. In contrast with London's soaring street crime problem, the national rise in street crime during the same period was 26 per cent.

The number of robberies peaked in October and November at around 6,800 a month.

A major part of the rise is due to a huge increase in mobile phone theft.

Figures show the number of mobiles being stolen in London has doubled almost every year for the past three years. In a ninemonth period last year more than 25,000 mobiles were stolen in the capital.